January 16, 2012 Monday Night RAW
The January 16, 2012 Edition of RAW is a Professional wrestling television show of the WWE's RAW brand, which took place on January 16, 2012 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Episode summary John Laurinaitis denied Mick Foley’s request to be in the Royal Rumble Match After Mick Foley kicked off Raw SuperShow by expressing his desire to be in the 2012 Royal Rumble Match – so that his two kids could see him compete – he was quickly criticized for such a lofty dream by former United States Champion Dolph Ziggler. Foley clarified that his goal was to be in the Royal Rumble Match to win it. After more harsh words for the WWE Legend, Ziggler told Foley to “just go away.” Ziggler-Foley Next, Ziggler’s Royal Rumble opponent, WWE Champion CM Punk, came out to greet his fellow “unconventional” Superstar, pointing out that neither hide behind a woman. The WWE Champion also called Ziggler out for having the GM in his back pocket for their match at Royal Rumble. As tensions grew in the ring, Laurinaitis emerged and said although he considered Foley’s request to be in the Royal Rumble Match, his answer was “no”! After the blunt answer, Vickie cackled in Foley’s face. Primo & Epico vs Air Boom In their first title defense since winning the WWE Tag Team Championships yesterday at a WWE Live Event in Oakland’s Oracle Center (WATCH), Primo & Epico downed former champions Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne, when Epico blasted Bourne with a backstabber. After the match, Rosa helped the duo celebrate. Zack Ryder vs Jack Swagger Even though he was injured at the hands of Kane on last week’s Raw SuperShow (MORE), United States Champion Zack Ryder was forced to defend his title against Jack Swagger. The match was made in the interest of “fairness’’ by the GM, who felt a ref made a bad call in Swagger’s match with Punk on last week’s Raw SuperShow (MORE). After punishing and humiliating his injured opponent with three gutwrench powerbombs, Swagger dethroned Ryder. The win was especially sweet for Swagger, who has been chasing championship glory since losing the World Heavyweight Championship in 2010. After the match, Interim Raw GM John Laurinaitis apologized after revealing Ryder was not medically cleared to compete. The Bella Twins vs Kelly Kelly & Alicia Fox With celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton acting as the special guest ring announcer, Hilton thwarted twin magic by causing a distraction, allowing Kelly Kelly to capture victory for her team. Afterward, The Bellas dropped Hilton to the canvas, who promptly hid behind Kelly Kelly & Fox to escape more twin wrath. Brodus Clay vs JTG After dancing his way to the ring, Brodus Clay took on JTG. Relying on an aresenal of hard-hitting moves, "The Funkasaurus" made quick work of JTG. 6-Man Tag Team Match In a marquee main event featuring some of Raw’s biggest Superstars, the odds changed when a fired up Chris Jericho curiously tagged out and simply walked away from the match. The balance of power shifted again, when World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan and Mark Henry’s fight took them away from the ring. To even the odds, Mick Foley joined the fray … claiming Laurinaitis gave him permission. After a DDT, followed by Mr. Socko, Foley put away Otunga for the win … or so he thought. After the bell, John Laurinaitis came to the ring and announced he never gave Foley permission to be in the match and reversed the decision. After the controversial call, Punk berated the GM for being uncharismatic and vanilla. But Laurinaitis, snapped and declared he would soon be the permanent GM and he will not be intimidated by Punk. Things came to a head when Foley forced the GM to admit he’s going to screw Punk at Royal Rumble. "You're damn right I will," Laurinaitis declared, then smashed Foley in the head with the mic! Results * Tag Team Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship: Primo & Epico (w/ Rosa Mendes) © defeated Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne * Singles Match for the United States Championship: Jack Swagger (w/ Vickie Guerrero) defeated Zack Ryder (w/ Eve Torres) © * Tag Team Match: Kelly Kelly & Alicia Fox defeated The Bella Twins (Nikki & Brie Bella) * Singles Match: Brodus Clay (Cameron & Naomi) defeated JTG * 6-Man Tag Team Match: Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler & David Otunga (w/ Vickie Guerrero) defeated Chris Jericho, CM Punk & Daniel Bryan Media Category:RAW episodes Category:2012 television episodes Category:Episodes featuring Vickie Guerrero Category:Episodes featuring Rosa Mendes Category:Episodes featuring Eve Torres Category:Kelly Kelly Category:Alicia Fox Category:Brie Bella Category:Nikki Bella Category:Cameron Category:Episodes featuring Naomi Category:WWE television episodes